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Conversations with the Inspiring Angie Zhang

Today we’d like to introduce you to Angie Zhang.

Angie, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always gravitated towards right-brained activities. When I was younger, this culminated in pursuit of singing and dancing: I was in a dance company, I breathed musical theatre, and I was ready to jump headfirst into a BFA in performance halfway across the country. Instead, I ended up barely 20 miles from home at Georgia Tech studying industrial engineering.

Because of this curveball, I resolved to tuck away my passions for good. But inevitably, I began to go stir-crazy without a creative outlet. During this time, I was also struggling to make friends and feel like I belonged at Tech. I “borrowed” my mom’s camera as a distraction, and through it, I found a way to genuinely connect with others.

Post college, I began to truly explore photography and how to take it further as a medium of expression. I wanted landscape photography to be my true love, but as I iterated, I realized the images imprinted on my heart were those capturing human emotion, movement, light, and shadow. A few months after graduating, I shot my first wedding: I collapsed in bed that night, exhausted to the bone but mind racing because I knew I had found my craft to hone. It only took another year for me to find the courage to pursue it…

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Pursuing wedding photography in a saturated market is not without its roadblocks; creating art for others unavoidably means facing self-doubt, playing the comparison game, and fighting insecurities.

Additionally, growing up in an Asian household, I struggle with a sense of duty to my parents to be successful in the traditional corporate way. My family means everything to me, but getting my parents to understand this love of mine is a headache. To be fair, they’ve raised me to be risk-averse, and self-employment is the opposite of that. So for now, I’ve appeased them by balancing a full-time consulting job and this beautiful photography side hustle. Some days I feel like I’m holding myself together by a thread, but it’s worth every bit of fatigue.

In terms of advice: don’t forget to reach out to the people behind the screen. We should spend as much (arguably more??) effort fostering personal relationships as we do cultivating our feeds. Drop a note to those who inspire you, and be a champion for others. Knowing the human running a business gives you context, and context makes way for meaningful and sustainable connections.

We’d love to learn more about your work. What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of as a brand, organization or service provider? What’s sets you apart from others?
I’m a wedding and portrait photographer based in Atlanta, cultivating a documentary-style, storytelling approach. I strive to catch flickers of emotion, pockets of light, and subtle movements. I draw inspiration from deep chiaroscuro, quiet glances, fleeting touches.

It’s an honor every time a couple entrusts me with documenting their day and their people. Their conviction in me is something I don’t take lightly.

It’s tricky to say definitively what sets me apart because this industry has many skilled artists, and I recognize that there are similarities across the board. But your truth is going to be told differently through each photographer’s style. I’m here for all the emotional highs and lows; I aim to encapsulate your day unobtrusively and with care. And I trust my imagery to reflect my work ethic, values, and artistic vision.

Do you have a lesson or advice you’d like to share with young women just starting out?
INVEST IN YOURSELF. YOU ARE WORTH IT. The greatest thing I’ve done for myself post-grad (other than buying real bedroom furniture) is investing in a photography mentorship with the unparalleled Elicia Bryan (www.eliciabryanweddings.com). Education doesn’t ever stop; always be looking for people to learn from, workshops to attend, articles to geek out over.

Related to that: find advocates in your field because this type of work gets lonely. Support is crucial. And there’s an acute difference in the type of support you get from friends and family who love you unconditionally but know nothing of the nuances of running a business, versus peers in your industry who can offer advice, bounce ideas, and really understand the hurdles. A bonus of reaching out to photographers you respect: you may be pleasantly surprised to find out they are as kind-hearted in person as they are talented.

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Angie Zhang Photography

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

1 Comment

  1. Michelle Curney Willis

    July 3, 2019 at 12:01 am

    Wow! These photos are breathtaking.

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